Clear (formerly ClearTax), India’s largest B2B SaaS company has announced the launch of its Invoice to Finance platform. Clear has been at the forefront of simplifying finance for individuals and businesses, and this latest initiative termed I2F (Invoice-to-Finance) for automating invoice financing is a testament to its commitment to fostering financial growth and inclusivity across the nation. Building upon its mission to streamline financial processes, Clear has successfully developed a ground-breaking invoice financing tool that utilizes the GST network as a robust foundation for extending supply chain financing.
With Clear’s I2F product, small businesses can access cost effective financing against their invoice in less than 30 minutes. It harnesses the power of GST data, enabling seamless digital processing of invoices and eliminating the need for extensive operational bandwidth consumed in traditional supply chain financing. By capitalizing on real-time e-invoice & GST filing data, the tool ensures greater conviction in credit underwriting process and automates credit processing journey, improving economics associated with short-term instruments for Financial Institutions.
Clear invoice financing is an industry first digital supply chain financing product. In this product, small businesses who sell to mid and large corporations can avail instant funds against their open invoices. To get started, vendors need to create their account on Clear, in case they are new to Clear environment, post that they need to authorize Clear to pull their GST data, on the basis of which limits are given to the vendor. Vendors can use this limit to get funds against open invoices in future. The process is simple, Clear auto-populates on the platform, the invoices which are eligible for funding and vendor simply selects against which invoices he/she needs funds. Within a short span, the vendor receives money in their bank account. Vendors can choose to repay the money as per their own cash flow planning and more importantly , coinciding with the time when they are likely to be paid by their buyer. Interest is paid only for the days for which credit was used, offering vendors the flexibility and optimizing their interest costs. The whole journey is digital, involving zero paperwork and takes 5 minutes to set up. For the product to work we have invested a lot of time in creating algorithms to assess credit worthiness of customers based on GST data. We analyze GST data to determine the strength of relationship between vendor and its supply chain, order fulfillment history and quality of sales. We have done this in association with leading financial institutions in the country. It is a great example of Clear bringing its understanding of GST data, clubbed with deep credit understanding of financial institutions to design a product which gives best in class experience to small businesses.
The product’s efficiency is unparalleled, as vendors can avail of credit facilities without needing to physically visit branches or undertake cumbersome paperwork. Underwriting is based on a comprehensive financial assessment report generated from GST data, providing a more holistic view of business operations compared to traditional lending methods. Clear’s deep expertise in GST data analysis has enabled the creation of robust parameters that enhance the accuracy of financial evaluations.
“We recognised a significant gap in the market when it came to supply chain financing for small businesses. Our automated invoice financing product is designed to bridge this gap by leveraging the power of GST data,” said Archit Gupta, Founder and CEO, Clear. “We are confident that our innovative solution will play a pivotal role in transforming supply chain financing, making it more accessible and efficient for businesses of all sizes.”
Clear’s journey towards revolutionizing supply chain financing began with the strategic acquisition of Xpedize Ventures Pvt. Limited in 2022. This acquisition enabled Clear’s enterprise clients to implement a digital invoice discounting and early payment program for their vendor base. Recognising the challenges vendors face in accessing this program, Clear forged partnerships with leading financial institutions to create a groundbreaking invoice financing product that is truly buyer-agnostic.
